The ruling elite is trying to influence the results of the constitutional referendum by using violence and toughening the political persecutions, members of the opposition New Armenia Front said at a pres conference on November 20.
They said that the measures against dissidence create a platform for formation of dictatorship in Armenia, which will spark nationwide protests. "In case of further negative scenarios, the entire responsibility will lie on the authorities," the members of the Front stressed. Human rights activists Arthur Sakunts and Zhanna Aleksanyan do not rule out possible arrests of the oppositionists for securing the "required" results of the referendum.
To recall, the constitutional referendum in Armenia is scheduled for December 6. The campaign headquarters of the ruling Republican Party of Armenia is headed by Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan, while the heads of the headquarters of the "No!" Front and the New Armenia Front are Levon Zurabyan and Zhirayr Sefilyan, respectively. The latter announced a decision to launch the process of power shift on December 1. "If the authorities try to use force, they will get an adequate response," Sefilyan said.